Sep 25, 2008

Entertainment - Zee Tamil gears up for big ticket launch

Judy Franko

Zee Tamil is all set to hit the airwaves around Vijaya Dasami. Zee News Ltd, part of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL), is planning a big-ticket launch with a 45-day media campaign spanning the entire state.The new channel will air 11 hours of original programming content and one and a half hour of news programme. To start with, Zee Tamil will have three soaps and two more would be added within 4-5 weeks of the launch. The channel, which is testing its signals now, is hopeful of being present in 90 per cent C&S households in Chennai. V Chandrasekaar Barathi, Business Head, Zee Tamil, said that the channel would be available on all major MSOs from day one. Apart from DishTV, the channel would be available on one or two more DTH platforms, he added.Zee Tamil also plans to have a high-decibel marketing blitzkrieg involving print, cinema, radio and outdoor. The launch campaign will break on October 1 and would be spread across the state for 45 days. The channel would also organise musical nights in six cities preceding the launch, which would feature some popular singers and film stars.DraftFCB Ulka is the creative agency on the account. Barathi agreed to the fact that the market was already crowded. He said, “There are no two ways about it. We are conscious about the fact that we are the 21st channel to enter the market. Our differentiation would be our narrative style, packaging and focus. Our strategy would be right placements, looking at audience preferences.”Barathi further said that Tamil Nadu currently had 21 channels, of which 11 were GECs, “but we are talking about only two or three channels, so there is scope for more channels to come and make a difference”.“When Kalaignar TV was launched, the overall time spent on television went up by 9 per cent. So, it is not that the existing time spend has been taken away, but there has been an increase in the time spent on the channels. Therefore, there is scope for more channels.” Barathi maintained.